The Cocanada Chamber of Commerce is moving towards sharing urea from the Kakinada anchorage port with the deep-water port, which is managed by Kakinada Sea Ports Limited (KSPL), a private consortium. | |
| The government had imposed certain restrictions on the deep-water port when it was handed over to the private consortium in order to protect the fishermen community, who depend on the port for livelihood. |
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| The restrictions included that the deep-water port should not handle general cargo like rice, fertilisers (urea, DAP), cement, maize, coal and sand. The deep-water port was allowed to handle liquid, hard and dirty cargo. |
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| The chamber is of the opinion that the accumulated urea at ports abroad, which cannot be handled by the Kakinada anchorage port, can be entrusted to the local traders. |
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| "We want to make trials for sharing the urea cargo in both ports "" anchorage and deep-water "" for creating an integrated Kakinada Port. If we will give a chance to divert 50 per cent share to the deep-water port, we can utilise the bumper urea stocks," Dantu Surya Rao, chairman of Cocanada Chamber of Commerce, said. |
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| The chamber is also planning a meeting with boat workers and steel barge owners in this regard. |
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| Rao said no injustice would be done to the boat workers and barge owners even if urea is diverted to the deep-water port, provided the anchorage port has sufficient capacity of urea for handling. |
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| However, a leader of the Steel Barge Owners Association told Business Standard that they would not accept any such proposal. |
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| "We have lost investments due to insufficient cargo to the anchorage port two years back. If we accept the chamber's proposal, we would lose our privileges permanently in future," he said. |
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